Snowball Party Should Not Be Gays Only

THE police recently turned down a
licence application for a gay Christmas party because those held in the last
two years had been targeted at gays only.

This went against the basis on which the permits were
granted, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong explained yesterday.

‘We allowed it and we made it quite clear that it had
to be a party which was not targeted at gays alone... As the party turned out,
our sense of it was that it was beyond what we were prepared to accept. So we
said no.’

Earlier this month, the police turned down an application
by Jungle Media to hold this year’s SnowBall party because ‘the event is
likely to be organised as a gay party which is contrary to public interest’.

The organisers appealed to Mr Lee and Home Affairs
Minister Wong Kan Seng, but they were not successful.

Asked yesterday if this meant Singapore was no longer
going all out for the ‘pink dollar’, Mr Lee said it was not a matter of
‘all or nothing’.

‘I think it’s a matter of balance... of how we can
have space for this group of people who are gays, whom we accept as
Singaporeans.

‘But at the same time, it’s about respecting the
outlook, values and perspective of the majority of Singaporeans, who know
Singapore to be a certain way and do not want to see it changing suddenly, and
I think they have a point.’